​Central banks’ gold purchases close to 50yr high – research

Central banks across the world have purchased a record 477.2 tons of gold in 2014 as an attempt to reduce the influence of the US dollar amid global financial instability, according to World Gold Council.

The global economic slowdown, coupled with political unrest and
falling oil prices have pushed monetary authorities across the
world into so-called currency wars. Over the past year the EU,
Russia, Ukraine, Singapore, and India have eased monetary
controls, with the Russian ruble and Ukrainian hryvnia losing
more than 50 percent of their value.